DEMEAU held the first in its three part series of final events in Zurich, Switzerland on June 17-18, 2015. Hosted on the premises of Eawag just outside of Zurich in Dübendorf, attendees engaged in collaborative knowledge exchange and discussions on the final research results, conclusions and contributions of the project. The two day event brought together the expertise of the whole project consortium, where the work areas presented the final results of their work within the project. In addition, two site visits of oxidation plants, one at Zurich Waterworks and another at the waste water treatment plant in Neugut, also took place.
On the first day, the event began with welcoming words from Theo van den Hoven, the DEMEAU project coordinator. Afterwards, the final presentation of research results per technology and LCA/LCC outcomes followed in a series of oral presentations from project partners. Furthermore, dissemination results and deliverables such as the DEMEAU video animation were presented, as well as drivers and barriers for market uptake of DEMEAU technologies. In the afternoon, Ecologic Institute with the support of WA5 members facilitated interactive, moderated discussions in working groups using the World Café method to encourage rich dialogues concerning the project and its societal impact. Over the course of the discussions, the contributions of the DEMEAU project to technological and non-technological innovation, decreasing environmental impact, the creation of new markets and knowledge transfer were assessed and the input gathered. This information will be included in the project’s final report and in the presentation of DEMEAU at the WssTP conference in Brussels.
On the second day of the event, the project’s work on the oxidation plants at WWTP Neugut and at the drinking water plant at Waterworks Zurich was presented before the attendees had the chance to attend a visit to either of the sites.